Last week the United States Internal Revenue Service announced that it will not be implementing a change to the reporting limit for players who win big at a casino or betting destination, noting that the changes would be expensive to implement for casinos.

The IRS had proposed changing the reporting level for player winnings to $600 from the current $1,200 and using player loyalty cards to capture win/loss data in order to be reported to the tax collector. The casino industry scoffed at these proposals, noting that the card programs weren't set up to record data in this way, and that players would be less likely to sign up for cards if they knew the information was being collected.

The move would also have proven to be expensive for casinos, as machines would have to be shut down each time a win was recorded at $600 or higher, and that there would be administrative difficulties in getting the reporting set up. It was estimated that lowering the reporting threshold would cost a casino between $300,000 to $600,000 per year.

The IRS, which is known for being stiff and rigid in its collecting methods actually listened to the industry and decided to keep the threshold at its current $1,200 level.

Speaking about the decision the American Gaming Association's CEO Geoff Freeman said, "Today's final IRS regulation is a big win not only for gaming companies and millions of casino visitors, but also for state and local governments who would have received fewer gaming tax dollars".